Tens of thousands of JFK assassination files are scheduled for release, potentially shedding new light on the 1963 tragedy.
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President Donald Trump has revealed that tens of thousands of JFK assassination files will be made public on Tuesday, fulfilling a campaign promise to disclose information surrounding the 1963 killing of President John F. Kennedy.
Speaking at the Kennedy Center on Monday, Mr Trump stated that “people have been waiting decades for this” and noted that the material—reportedly around 80,000 pages—would not be subject to redaction.
FBI uncovers additional 2,400 JFK assassination records
Just last month, the FBI announced the discovery of roughly 2,400 additional records tied to the Kennedy assassination, found during a thorough search prompted by the president’s executive order. According to the bureau, these documents were “previously unrecognised as related to the JFK assassination case file” and have been transferred to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) for declassification. The FBI has not divulged what these records contain, but their existence underscores the extensive trove of assassination-related material still being pieced together.
The impetus for this declassification can be traced back to Mr Trump’s first week in office, when he signed an executive order calling for the release of files concerning not only John F. Kennedy’s assassination, but also those of his brother, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Under this order, the Director of National Intelligence and the Attorney General were given 15 days to formulate a plan for the “full and complete release” of JFK records.
National archives prepares to publish millions of JFK assassination records
The National Archives has been central to this decades-long process. In 1992, Congress passed the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act, requiring all assassination-related documents to be gathered and eventually released. Over the past 30 years, NARA has made significant portions of its collection—more than 5 million pages—available to the public. Most recently, in August 2023, the agency released a new batch of files, stating in December 2022 that more than 97% of the JFK collection is now accessible.
With Mr Trump confirming Tuesday’s release, the stage is set for what could be one of the largest disclosures of assassination-related material in recent history. Observers and researchers alike are keen to see if these fresh documents offer new insights or merely confirm long-held theories. Either way, the release marks a noteworthy milestone in the ongoing quest for transparency about one of the most studied events in American history.
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